Coming Soon, the iPad3: Effects of New Technology on Education and the Digital Divide
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I got this artcle from Lori Day of the Huffington Post. Interesting read
Is it just me, or does the continued hyper-focus on technology in the classroom leave anyone else just a little bit cold? While it has long been said that academic institutions change more slowly than any others, and for good reason, this is perhaps no longer the case. When I was a school administrator, the joke was always that the kids could keep ahead of the technology, while the adults were forever chasing both.
I do believe that our children are growing up in an increasingly disconnected world -- socially, emotionally, and geographically. Educational technology offers the opportunity for kids to be "connected" in many different ways, even socially, even globally. Is this sort of virtual connection a viable substitute for real connections among students, and between students and adults in their schools? Or does it actually enhance those real-world connections? I think the question of the place of educational technology is one of emphasis, not of essential value.
Less than a year after release of the iPad2, here comes the iPad3. I'm no technology expert, so I do not presume to know how the 3 will surpass the 2, or whether the new iPad will make significant inroads into schools. It seems that everyone has something to say about educational technology these days, and that's not a bad thing. Technology and the Internet allow all of us to have something to say about education, which broadens the stage for this very important discussion.
